Fly-closer for boots and shoes.



O. A. BONNEY.

FLY CLOSER FOR BOOTS AND SHOES. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 8', 1909. RENEWED 001'. 21, 1911.

1,108,965. Patented Se t-1,1914.

I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. g

CHARLES A. BONNEY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

FLY-CLOSER FOB BOOTS AND SHOES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 1, 1914.

Application filed November 8, 1909, Serial No. 526,859. Renewed October 21, 1911. Serial No.656,039.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES A. BoNNnY, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented certain Improvements in Fly-Closers for Boots and Shoes, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings 1nd1- eating like parts in the several figures. 4

This invention relates to fly-closers to hold together the opposite flies of a shoe upper during the manufacture of the shoe and it is an object of the invention to improve devices of this class and particularly to provide a fly-closer suitable for use on either lace shoes or button shoes. g

I-Ieretofore it has been customary to use detachable fly-closers in lace shoes, which engaged the eyeleted edges of the flies, whereby the leather of the upper and also the lining were held in engagement with the fly-closers. As the lining, which is usually of canvas or of a grade of leather different from that of the upper, stretches quite differently from upper leather, this method of holding the flies closed was not always satisfactory nor productive of the best fitting of the shoe upper to the last. So far as applicant is informed, no detachable fly-closer has been heretofore provided capable of engaging the linings only of opposite flies or of engaging the lining independently of the leather of the upper.

To this end, an important feature of this invention consists in means which will hold the opposite flies of a shoe together by engagement with the lining only of the flies. An. advantage incident to this feature is that the device of this invention is not limited to use with lace shoes, as has previously been the case with detachable fly-closers, but may be used also upon other types of shoes provided with a lining.

In the manufacture of button shoes, it has been customary to utilize the buttons and buttonholes to close the flies and to hold the u per upon the last during the manufacture of the shoes. However, during the important operation of lasting, a heavy strain is put upon the buttons as the upper is stretched and strained over the last and secured to the insole, or to the sole in turn shoes. The button fastenings are not intended to withstand such a strain as is thus put upon them, nor are the buttons positloned upon the upper to serve properly as a means to hold the upper during lasting. The buttons are usually aflixed to one fly along the side of the shoe and in a curved line, and therefore the lasting strain is not evenly distributed either upon the upper or upon the buttons. This results in an uneven stretching of the upper and consequently in a badly fitting shoe. A frequent difficulty in this method also is that the button fastenings are often loosened and the buttons are sometimes pulled off during the lasting operation. In order to obviate the difficulties just mentioned it has been custernary to unite the button fly with the. opposlte fly by a series of stitchesengaging the lining only of each fly and extending across the front edge of the last, thereby relieving the buttons from the strain of lastlng and .also properly distributing such strain upon each side of the front edge of the last. This method, however, is slow and objectionable, the stitches have to be put in by hand, are not always uniform in position or tension, of course result in a waste of the thread used, and can only be employed in mak ng the highest priced shoes on account I of the extra expense involved. I

An important object of this invention, therefore, is to provide aninexpensivefde tachable fly-closer capable of use upon button shoes, and applicantbelieves himself to be the first to provide a detachable fly-closer for button shoes and desires to claim the same broadly.

Itis-a further object of the invention to provide a fly-eloser capable of being detached while the flies are under tension.

Other advantages of fly-closers embodying this invention are that they are capable of being used repeatedly and may be applied when the upper is being lasted either inside .out, as in turn shoes, or right side out, as in welt and McKay shoes.

In the preferred embodiment of the inven tion as herein shown, a detachable fly-closer is provided comprising means to engage the lining only of each fly and having a connecting member uniting the means engaging one fly with the means engaging the other. Preferably two pairs of engaging means are utilized in one fly-closer, one pair of engaging means being yieldingly conneeted with the other pair, thereby providing a plurality of engagements with the lining of each fly and the yielding connection serving to hold both pairs of engaging means in their respective operative positions.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal mid-sectional view of the device of my invention as applied to a turn shoe in place upon a last, the upper of the shoe being indicated in section, and shown as turned wrong side out; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the device of my invention; and Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the same applied to the meeting edges of the fly of a shoe before it is applied to the last, fragments of the fly being shown broken away.

As shown in the drawings, the preferred embodiment of the invention comprises two staple shaped members 454 having their crown portions secured to the ends of a flat spring 5, the legs of the members t4.- constituting prongs adapted to engage and retain the linings 6.6 of opposite flies of a shoe upper. The illustrated construction is such that the spring 5 normally operates to maintain the members 4i at a maximum distance apart and, when the fly-closer is in use, to resist withdrawing movement of the members 4-4 toward each other to prevent accidental disengagement of the work engaging prongs from the work. At the same time, this construction and arrangement provides for readily detaching the work engaging prongs of the members 4-4: from the work, even when the flies are under tension,

- merel b com ressin the s rin 5 or b Y y P e P e y bowing it, to permit inward withdrawing movement of the members le-4. In the use of the fly-closer of the present invention, the work engaging prongs of the members 4.4 may be inserted in the work simultaneously by compressing or bowingthe spring 5 and applying the work engaging prongs to the linings 6-6 at the proper places, whereupon a straightening of the spring 5 will operate to cause the work engaging prongs to pierce the fly linings 66 and drive the prongs into holding engagement therewith. If preferred, the illustrated fly-closer may also be attached to the work by first inserting either pair of work engaging prongs in place in the fly linings 6-6, as illustrated in Fig. 3, contracting the spring 5 for a distance approximating the length of the prongs of the other member 4, and then inserting the work engaging prongs of the free member 4 in the fly sections 66 and releasing the spring 5. When the fly-closer is in its operative or attached position, it will be noticed that the crowns of the staple shaped members l4: extend transversely of the fly opening of the shoe upper substantially at right angles thereto so that the fly-closer offers a maximum resistance to lasting strains. More over, as hereinbefore suggested, the above described construction'pfovldesa fly-closer adapted to be attached either to the outside or to the inside of a shoe and capable of being readily detached even while the flies are under tension, whether attached to the inside or to the outside of the shoe.

lVhen the sole has been attached to the upper, the entire shoe structure is removed from the last 7 and the fly-closer is withdrawn by the operator by simply inserting the finger underneath the spring 5 and pulling the prongs 4=4; outwardly and out of engagement with the fly-sections 66.

Preferably the spring 5 is of such a yielding or sinuous structure that it will tend to conform to the longitudinal curve of the front edge of the last, as illustrated in Fig. 1.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to have secured to me by the grant of Letters Patent, is:

1. A detachable fly-closer for shoes comprising two staple shaped members having oppositely and outwardly directed work engaging prongs and a spring whereon said members are mounted and whereby said members are normally separated from each other substantially as described.

2. A detachable fly-closer for shoes comprising two staple shaped members having oppositely and outwardly directed work engaging prongs and a sinuous spring whereon said members are mounted and whereby said members are normally kept separated from each other substantially as described.

8. A detachable fly-closer for button shoes, comprising means to engage each fly and yielding means uniting said engaging means, said engaging means beingconstructed and arranged to be attached either to the inside or to the outside of a shoe upper and to bereadily detachable even While the flies are under tension whether attached to the inside or outside of the upper.

4. A detachable fly-closer for shoes comprising two oppositely directed members each having outwardly directed prongs arranged to engage andretain the linings of opposite flies of a shoe upper, and a spring connecting said members and arranged to permit and facilitate oppositely moving said members to effect simultaneous insertion of the prongs of both said members in the work.

5. A detachable fly-closer for shoes comprising two members each having outwardly directed work engaging parts, and a yielding connection between said members arranged to resist withdrawing movement of said; members toward each other when the fastener is in use to prevent accidental disengagement of the work engaging parts of said members from the work.

6. A detachable fly-closer for shoes comprising two oppositely directed members each having outwardly directed work engaging prongs adapted to engage and retain the linings of opposite flies of a shoe upper, and a spring connecting said members acting normally to maintain said members at a maximum distance apart and operating when the fastener is in use to prevent accidental withdrawal of said prongs from the work.

7 A detachable fly-closer for shoes comprising two oppositely directed members each having outwardly directed prongs arranged to engage and retain the linings of opposite flies of a shoe upper, and a spring connecting said members and normally operating to resist withdrawing movement of said prongs from the work but capable of manipulation to permit withdrawal of said prongs from the work even when the flies are under tension.

8. A detachable fly closer for shoes comprising two staple shaped members each having outwardly extending prongs arranged to engage and retain the linings of opposite flies of a shoe upper and having their crowns arranged to extend when in use transversely of the fly opening of the upper substantially at right angles thereto to enable the fastener to offer a maximum resistance to lasting strains, together with resilient means connecting said members.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in. presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES A. BONNEY.

Witnesses:

ALFRED A. EIoKs, WALTER O. STEIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

